“John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist,
and he ate locusts and wild honey.” –Mark 1:6
A friend of mine got the newest iPhone when it was released, the one that speaks to you when you ask a question. When she was showing me how it worked she asked her iPhone the question that keeps us all awake at night: “What is the meaning of life?” In seconds the iPhone responded, “I find it odd that you would ask an inanimate object such a question.” While we laughed and laughed at the phone’s response, it got me thinking about who and what we turn to for answers to life’s deepest questions. As humans, we want to know the meaning and purpose of our lives, and we are constantly looking for people and experiences to help us find an answer. But could it be that we are looking for answers in the wrong –perhaps even silly – places (like an iPhone)? Or like the TV or music industry? Perhaps in politics or sports? Who (and what) are we hoping will answer our questions about the meaning and purpose of life?
In the Advent Scripture readings we remember the witness of John the Baptist, and we are reminded that truth about God’s purposes for life can come from very unlikely places. John’s outfits were quite strange, his meals are less than appetizing, and his message of repentance is not one that we would pay to hear. And yet, John was the messenger of God who declared God’s purposes for the world. John prepared the way for Jesus.
In Advent we remember that God’s truth and purposes are revealed in unlikely people. Through John, an eccentric prophet. Through Mary, a humble thirteen-year-old girl who was brave enough to say “yes” to God’s will. Through Jesus, an infant baby lying in a manger. This Advent, I invite you to open your eyes to see God’s truth in unlikely people and unlikely places. You might just discover a purpose for your life by talking with an eccentric neighbor, a nerdy classmate, a young child. God works in mysterious ways – may we have eyes to see God’s will revealed in our lives.
Advent Blessings,
Laura
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